Events & Guests
Michał Oleszczyk
Artistic Director of the Gdynia Film Festival
A film critic and a translator, Dr. Oleszczyk holds a Ph.D. in Film Studies from Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland. His reviews have been published in magazines such as "Kino," "Tygodnik Powszechny," "Przekrój," "Dwutygodnik," "Fandor" and "RogerEbert.com". Dr. Oleszczyk is also a programmer and media spokesman of the Off Plus Camera Festival and of Polish Filmmakers NYC, an organization promoting Polish cinema in New York City. He has authored several books and blogs. In 2012, he won the PISF award in the “Film Criticism” category.
The Gdynia Film Festival is the biggest film event and one of the oldest film festivals in Poland. It has existed for many years thanks to the high artistic levels of the films, which attracts a large audience and inspires the interest of critics.
In person at the Grand Opening and after the screening of Warsaw 44.
Jan Komasa
Jan Komasa is one of the most talented young Polish directors, whose uncompromising films are writing the next chapter in the country’s rich filmmaking tradition. He graduated in Film Directing from the National Film School in Lodz. His student debut short film, Nice to See You, placed in the top three in Cannes’ Cinéfondation competition. He directed the Warsaw segment of Ode to Joy (2005), a feature film that won a number of awards at festivals such as Gdynia, Koszalin, and Houston. In 2008 he directed a 90- minute “Theatre on TV” performance in the section of Staging Facts entitled “The Wrocław Golgotha,” which was granted many prestigious awards. His feature-length debut Suicide Room, screened in Rochester in 2012, won numerous awards, among others in Gdynia, Kiev, and Geneva.
In person at the Grand Opening and after the screening of Warsaw 44.
Kinga Dębska
Kinga Dębska is a journalist and documentary film maker, graduate of the University of Warsaw, Cameraimage Film School in Toruń, and the FAMU Film and TV School in Prague where she studied under Jiři Menzl. Her documentaries won many prestigious awards; the most recent one, The Actress, recieved Special Jury Award at the 2015 New York Polish Film Festival. Her first feature, a thriller-drama entitled Hel was produced in 2009. The next one, These Daughters of Mine, received the Audience and the Journalists’ Awards at the 2015 Gdynia Film Festival.
In person after the screening of These Daughters of Mine.
Zbigniew Domagalski
Zbigniew Domagalski is one of the most experienced producers of feature and documentary films, co-owner and president of Studio Filmowe Kalejdoskop. Studio Filmowe Kalejdoskop was established in January 1989, as one of the first independent film production companies in Poland. Kalejdoskop has produced over 200 film productions. Its productions have received over 80 awards at various Polish and international film festivals. Its most recent productions include These Daughters of Mine, The Actress, and Call Me Marianna.
In person after the screening of These Daughters of Mine.
Karolina Bielawska
Karolina Bielawska graduated in directing from the Krzysztof Kieślowski Radio and Television Faculty at the University of Silesia in Katowice and from the Development Lab Feature Programme at the Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing in Warsaw. She has directed short films and documentaries which have been shown and awarded at major international and Polish film festivals. In 2015, her feature Call Me Marianna won the Best Film and the Audience Award at Krakow Film Festival and the Zonta Club Locarno Award at Locarno Film Festival.
In person after the screening of Call Me Marianna.